Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Onshore Wind Proposals: Community Engagement

Tuesday 4 July 2023 · 5 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • The Government issued a consultation on 11 May for onshore wind partnerships in England, proposing improvements to community engagement and benefits.
  • The consultation on onshore wind partnerships aims to work with RenewableUK to update the industry-wide community benefits protocol for onshore wind in England.
  • The Minister refutes claims that there is no onshore wind in the UK, stating that onshore wind contributes 14 GW of power to the national grid.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Alexander Stafford
Energy Environment
Context

None provided.

Question

What steps has the Department taken to ensure local community engagement in onshore wind proposals?

Answer from Andrew Bowie

The Government want communities to participate in and benefit from onshore wind proposed in their local area. On 11 May, the Government issued a consultation for onshore wind partnerships in England, proposing improvements to the current system of community engagement and benefits.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The question was about specific steps taken, but the answer focused more on future intentions with a consultation.

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Q2 Alexander Stafford
Climate Energy
Context

Energy firms in some areas provide discounts to those living near onshore wind farms, but not universally.

Question

Some energy firms give discounts to those who live near onshore wind farms when the wind blows. Unfortunately, though, that is not the case everywhere. Will the Minister look again at this policy nationally so that my constituents, such as those who live in Ulley near Penny Hill wind farm, and even myself—I live in Harthill near Loscar wind farm—will see the benefits of clean, green wind power reflected in their energy bills?

Answer from Andrew Bowie

The consultation on onshore wind partnerships proposed that the Government work with RenewableUK to update the industry-wide community benefits protocol for onshore wind in England. An updated protocol would seek to encourage more innovative approaches, for example through developers supporting local energy bill discounts. The consultation closes on 7 July.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The answer addresses an initiative but does not commit to a national review of existing policy.

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Q3 Anna McMorrin Lab Cardiff North
Climate
Context

The Climate Change Committee reported a lack of progress towards net zero emissions, highlighting the importance of onshore wind.

Question

I am not sure there is much point in community engagement when there is no onshore wind. We do not have any onshore wind. Last week, we heard the Climate Change Committee's devastating report on this country's commitment to net zero. When will this Government unlock the barriers to onshore wind?

Answer from Andrew Bowie

I completely refute the suggestion that we have no onshore wind. Onshore wind contributes 14 GW of power to the UK's national grid as we speak, and of course we support the deployment of onshore wind with communities.

Not addressed: The question was about barriers to new projects, but the answer focused on existing capacity without addressing future challenges.

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Q4 Alan Whitehead Lab
Climate
Context

The Secretary of State promised to lift the onshore wind ban by April but has not done so.

Question

The Minister is sort of right that there have been some onshore wind turbines built just recently—two since February 2022, so there is not much chance of community engagement there, to be honest. In December, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities promised that the onshore wind ban would be completely lifted by the end of April this year. Why have the Government broken that promise?

Answer from Andrew Bowie

I will take no lectures from the Labour party on developing renewable electricity. When Labour left office in 2010—[Interruption.] They do not like to hear this, but when Labour left office in 2010, less than 7% of the grid was accounted for by renewables. Now it is 43%.

Not addressed: The question was about breaking a promise, but the answer attacked the opposition instead.

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Q5 Alan Whitehead Lab
Climate
Context

Lord Deben, chairman of the Climate Change Committee, criticized the government's consultation as insufficient.

Question

I think maybe the Government should take lessons from Labour. It is now generally understood that the Government consultation is likely to lead to only minimal relaxation of planning rules and that onshore wind will effectively remain banned. Tory peer Lord Deben, chairman of the Climate Change Committee, said of the consultation on Saturday that it is simply unacceptable that the Government are still discussing whether they are in favour of onshore wind or not when it is widely recognised as one of the cheapest forms of energy generation. He is right, is he not?

Answer from Andrew Bowie

I really wish the Labour party would stop talking down what we are doing on renewable electricity. I remind the House that the consultation on onshore wind finishes on 7 July.

Not addressed: The question was about accepting criticism, but the answer deflected to criticise Labour and highlight ongoing consultations.

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